We must not go back to the borders of the past was the clear message from Paul Convery, President of Newry Chamber of Commerce & Trade at the our Annual President’s Banquet, in the Canal Court Hotel & Spa.
Highlighting the story of Newry’s economic success, the President of the Chamber said:
“Today, we have created one of Northern Ireland’s fastest growing regions, strategically positioned as we are at the heart of the Dublin-Belfast economic corridor. It is an area renowned for its entrepreneurial spirit, dynamic business leaders and talented workforce.
The Greater Newry Area is home to 7 of Northern Ireland’s top 100 companies. Small local businesses, like Norbrook Laboratories, the MJM Group and First Derivatives have developed into global players.”
Calling for clarity on Brexit he said:
“We do not want to go back to a period of barriers, borders and bureaucratic customs checks, which will make our businesses uncompetitive and our area unattractive to visitors, investors and the people who want to do business with us.
To exploit the opportunities and continue to generate growth we need a resolution to Brexit. The arrival of the Single Market and the Good Friday Agreement led to a situation where the border could quite simply disappear. Since then, businesses and communities, lives and livelihoods have developed and prospered beyond any previous measure.
As business leaders we owe it to the young people growing up in our city where full employment is now the norm, we simply cannot turn the clock back.”